Brevard Housing Market Continues Positive Signs

REAL ESTATE

BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA – Florida’s housing market increased pending sales and higher median prices in April, along with a greatly-reduced inventory of homes and condos for sale, according to Florida Realtors® latest housing data.

McCoy

“The market is swift in many areas of Brevard, especially the beach and waterfront as a whole – lack of inventory is generating multiple offers and driving prices up,” said Brevard County Realtor Jennifer McCoy with RE/MAX Elite.

“We are extremely busy with buyer’s from all over the world and they are coming to buy a piece of paradise here on Florida’s Space Coast.”

Median Sales Price Up 10.2 Percent

The statewide median sales price for single-family existing homes in April was $144,350, up 10.2 percent from the year-ago figure, according to data from Florida Realtors Industry Data and Analysis department, and vendor partner 10K Research and Marketing.

The statewide median for townhome-condo properties was $108,000, up 16.1 percent over April 2011.

The median is the midpoint; half the homes sold for more, half for less. Housing industry analysts note that sales of foreclosures and other distressed properties continue to downwardly distort the median price because they generally sell at a discount relative to traditional homes.

“Home prices continue to rise in many markets. Inventory is down to extremely low levels while pending sales are on the rise – almost 38 percent for single-family homes and 25 percent for townhomes and condos. It is not unusual to see multiple offers.

“Now the challenge will be for appraisals to catch up. Overall, we are very happy to see the market move in this direction and expect this trend to continue.”

Pending sales refer to contracts that are signed but not yet completed or closed; closed sales typically occur 30 to 90 days after sales contracts are written.

The national median sales price for existing single-family homes in March 2012 was $163,600, up 1.9 percent from the previous year, according to the National Association of Realtors® (NAR).

In California, the statewide median sales price for single-family existing homes in March was $291,080; in Massachusetts, it was $267,500; in Maryland, it was $225,601; and in New York, it was $215,000.

Looking at Florida’s year-to-year comparison for sales of townhomes/condos, a total of 9,765 units sold statewide last month, down 4.9 percent from those sold in April 2011. NAR reported the national median existing condo price in March 2012 was $165,200.

In April, there was a 5.8-month supply of single-family homes in inventory and a 5.7-month supply for townhomes/condos, according to Florida Realtors.

Tuccillo

“The housing numbers for the state of Florida continue to signal recovery,” said Florida Realtors Chief Economist Dr. John Tuccillo.

“Sales in 2012 are above where they were in 2011, a harbinger of a third straight year of improvement. More importantly, pending sales are up dramatically, and inventory is still falling. Financing constraints still mean that a significant percentage of these will not lead to closed sales, but with the numbers up, we are confident that closed sales will continue to rise.

“The increase in both median and average prices suggests that investors are having a strong impact on the market, soaking up lower priced inventory and causing buyers to move up the price ladder.”

The interest rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.91 percent in April 2012, down from the 4.84 percent average during the same month a year earlier, according to Freddie Mac.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Freeman

Bobby Freeman, a life-time resident of Brevard County, has been a top Realtor in the area for two decades. In his first year as an agent, Freeman received a Rising Star award from his Brokers. Since then he has achieved numerous sales awards and has recently been presented with the prestigious RE/MAX Hall of Fame Award.

Freeman, Jennifer McCoy and Nikki McCoy Freeman are family partners for RE/MAX Elite’s McCoy-Freeman Group. Together they have more than 30 years of extensive experience in all aspects of the real estate industry and have sold over $150 million. Among McCoy-Freeman Group’s achievement are RE/MAX Hall of Fame, RE/MAX 100% Club, Certified Distressed Property Experts (CDPE), Accredited Buyer’s Representative (ABR) and voted Best Realtor in Brevard County. The group has been featured in many news publications including CNN Money Magazine, CNNMoney.com, WFTV 9 ABC News, Florida Today, Coastal Condo Living, & Hot Retirement Towns Magazine and SpaceCoastDaily.com.